Los Angeles - anyone been?

[teddymeow]

So, yeah, off to LA next week. With E3 only taking up 3 of my 8 days there I was wondering if any of you could recommend some cool things to do.

I was planning on running about asking anyone if they'd seen Jack Bauer but obviously he lives in New York now so...

But if anybody can recommend some interesting places to visit (and point me in the direction of a decent Blu-ray retailer ) I'd be very grateful.

I've never been to the US. How expensive is stuff like food and drink? Just so I know my budget.

Thanks.

[abigsmurf]

Universal Studios is well worth doing, try to avoid doing it at the weekend (less crowded during the week) take a bottle of water with you on the tram tour (takes over an hour and LA is effing hot). Make sure you do the tram tour though, it's great.

The Warner bros studio tour comes highly recommended by my dad who did it. It's less flashy than the Universal one but features more actual sets.

You can do the Hollywood walk of fame and see a film at Mann's chinese theatre. Just be warned, unless you go during a premiere, it really isn't at all glamourous .

Santa Monica is a very nice place to walk around, worth going for a wander if you like exploring (one of the few places I've been to in the US that has an equivalent to a UK high street)

Food: Most fast food and theme restaurants are slightly cheaper than the equivalent over here. Remember to tip! You will piss off servers (and possibly be questioned by a manager) if you don't tip.

There's a fast food chain called In n Out burger. They do the nicest burgers of any fast food place I've ever been too. All the burgers are cooked fresh to order and they're incredibly nice. Make sure you eat there at least once.

The buffets are quite nice, I think it's LA where they have Hometown buffets. They can get packed though.

For Blu Ray shopping, you'll probably want to go to a Mall. There are several scattered around (don't confuse outlet malls or mini malls with a full mall). If you're not sure which is the biggest/best, ask the hotel desk. They'll probably tell you the best way of getting to it if you're not driving (Don't use LA buses at night).

[Neon Ignition]

Have access to a car at all times

Words can't convey the sheer scale of LA and it's like it's been built out of freeway. An easy recommendation has to be Disneyland. Same rules as Universal apply regarding being busy at times and if you just do 1 day that will decide if you get around everything but there are some great rides there. Space Mountain is a joy but very short so never queue for long, get there early.

[doodledude]

Like above, try and avoid public transport it takes ages and doesn't cover a lot of the best places.

Santa Monica and the beaches around there are nice. Hollywood blvd and surrounding areas are good for a walk around.

Food when I went 5 years ago was a little cheaper but you get a hell of a lot more for your buck!

[Concrete donkey]

I went to LA for E3 in 2003. The first thing we realized was LA was a lot more interesting than a bunch of computer games that would be in our homes in six months time so after about one and a half days we pretty much ditched the convention (we only had six days though).

I second the advice about the car and under no circumstances trust taxis. Use them if you must, but that's where your budget is going to if you do. If you thought New York Cabbies were bad at ripping people off you ain't seen nothing yet. The bus and underground are cheap (the underground was limited but continuingly expanding when I was there so it may be better now.) but full of ...(weirdos isn't polite is it) interesting people. We used the underground a lot as our hotel was on a line that took us to the LA convention centre. There's also a train link to LAX (think we had to use a connecting shuttle bus, can't quite remember now) so you don't have to use the ridiculously overpriced taxi's if you don't have an awful lot of luggage.

There was a really cool shop called Aaron Records but after a quick google search I see that they've closed down. Sorry.

For DVDs and probably Blu Rays (they weren't around when I went there) a friend of ours took us to a place a little bit out of town called DVD Planet, on Beach Boulevard, Westminster (my receipt says 15251 for the street number but their web address has it at 16672 so they could have moved ). They had the biggest and widest selection of DVD's I had ever seen in my life (this was before I went to New York) and better yet, there was a similar store next door but for alcohol. No idea if it;s still there though. We spent a lot of time in those two shops.

As well as Santa Monica there's also Venice Beach. We walked from one to another along the beach which was cool. Saw sharks in the water. As for theme parks, we only went to Universal Studios but it was good.

[Wil]

All of the above. Santa Monica was nice to wander around and Universal is ok although it was 2002 when I last went so I guess they might not have the T2 and BTTF rides anymore. The tram tour of the studios was also good. On the whole, though, once away from the tourist attractions I found LA to be a bit of a dump. I stayed at the show a fair bit but they did have the weird lure of Kenitia Hall then and I got to meet Shigsy!

[QualityChimp]

Hey! I went to tha Wesside a few years back. I mainly spent my time chillin' with my homes in Compton.

In reality, I remember reading an article in a French lesson at school that we had to translate and I remember vividly that it said people wearing Dunlop trainers would get shot in the hood!

So don't wear Dunlops, m'kay?

I actually did a tour around (taking in Vegas, Death Valley, Yosemite, San Fran and Santa Cruz etc.), but started and finished in L.A. After a few days in L.A., you realise it's pretty much just a big city, but there's quite a few touristy things to distract you.

Having a car is useful and fairly cheap, but the drivers in L.A. are mofos. If you've driven in London, you'll be fine though. Just push your way into the lane you want. Every other douchebag does!

I'd do a tour because you get to see a lot of the sights in one day - Hollywood sign, Hollywood bowl, Hollywood walk of fame, Hollywood smog, houses of the rich and famous, the building they blow up in Independence Day, the Chinese Theatre, where Hugh Grant picked up Devine Brown - that kind of thing. I did it in an air-conditioned minibus so it wasn't too hot and there weren't too many in the group. Jean-Claude Van Damme's house is nice. I didn't nick the milk off his doorstep, mind.

We also went to Venice Beach and checked out the uber-buff people at Muscle Beach.

Theme parks-wise, you're spoilt for choice!

Obviously there's Disneyland and Universal Studios. If you've never been to the equivalents in Florida, then go check them out! I'd favour Universal over Disney every time. There's not many roller coasters, they're more attractions, but rides like Revenge of the Mummy, Jurassic Park, T2-3D, Studios Tour and The Simpson: The Ride are all world class.

There's also a smaller park called Knott's Berry Farm, that's got some good rides and has a really nice atmosphere. GhostRider, Jaguar and Xcelerator are all great thrills.

However, if you get chance to visit just one park, I'd plump for Six Flags Magic Mountain. It's got X2, which is the first ever 4th dimensional coaster (ie. the seats rotate as you go around!) and there's only one in Japan remotely similar.

They've also got The Riddler (world's tallest stand-up coaster), Superman: The Escape (first coaster to break 100mph), Goliath (one of the tallest in the world), Scream! (great, smooth floorless ride) and loads of others! In fact, it was joint record holder for the most rides with Cedar Point until 2008.

I've probably got to the end of all this and you don't like roller coasters...

No matter, have yourself a supersweet time and have a Wendy's burger for me!

[abigsmurf]

If you go to Disneyland. Go on Indiana Jones. It's a brilliant ride and it's different every time (your car goes randomised routes and you experience different traps), go on it several times if the queues aren't bad. Space Mountain is good (like a very fast mine train in the dark)

Forgot about Knott's Berry Farm and it's snoopy goodness. Good park for tame rides (I'm a coaster wuss).

Went to Magic Mountain a long time ago, they've probably changed half of the rides since I went there. Was a good 'pure' theme park though. Much closer to places like Thorpe Park than to Disney/Universal. Wonder if they've still got the chewing gum problem in the ride queues...

Don't go to Californian Adventure. It's by far the worst of the main theme parks. Cheap, tacky rides, insane queues and some creepy patriotism. Also believe it's getting heavily rebuilt for a Cars ride (based off of Test Track tech).

[ezee ryder]

Nice, I fly out this Saturday (mainly for E3) so cheers for starting this thread teddy and some very informative answers people.

Are the cabs that bad? Don't really want to hire out a car and it seems like the "simplest" form of travel. My hotel is near LAX, anyone have an idea how much it would cost to get to the LA Convention Center from there?

[Concrete donkey]

Two friends and I wanted to get to our hotel, a journey from Sunset boulevard to Hollywood boulevard. Now there was some distance between our two locations but the streets run parallel and almost next to each other. It was about three in the morning so it was kind of late. We asked the taxi driver how much it would be. The answer was $200.

Needless to say we decided it was a good time for a walk. Thankfully we bumped into a Mexican Elvis who told us a night bus would take us most of the way for something like $1.60.

So yes, they really are that bad. This isn't the only time this happened, and we did use the cab afew times. One time there was someone with the driver teaching them how to be a taxi driver. It felt like she was teaching her how to drive.

So if you do use a cab, ask how much it will be first and check to make sure that the seatbelts work.

As for LAX to the convention centre. Both should have metro lines nearby. I'd recomend using them. It's cheap and when I was there, safer than the bus.

[ezee ryder]

Ah ok, cheers mate.

[wakka]

It's got X2, which is the first ever 4th dimensional coaster (ie. the seats rotate as you go around!) and there's only one in Japan remotely similar.

Eejanaika in Fuji Q isn't just 'remotely similar', it's actually better though. I just had to point this out as a rollercoaster geek....

[PeteJ]

My E3 advice - take water!

[teddymeow]

Thanks all for the suggestions. Proper excited now!! I'd been so busy prepping for my actual holiday that this only really hit once I got home last week. I have to pack soon and it's proving to be an issue as I want room in my case for tat coming back!!

[dataDave]

So, yeah, off to LA next week. With E3 only taking up 3 of my 8 days there I was wondering if any of you could recommend some cool things to do.

Go to a shooting range and fire some guns.